Tuesday, April 24, 2012

We bought a 2012 Subaru Forester and why

Our new 2012 Subaru Forester 2.5X
There are some changes in the Subcompact Culture garage. Yesterday, we traded our 2010 Suzuki SX4 AWD crossover for a 2012 Subaru Forester 2.5X with a five-speed manual transmission. You may or may not be wondering, what gives?

Although we had a good experience with our 2010 Suzuki SX4, frankly, I'm a bit unsure of Suzuki's future in the U.S. with regards to automobiles. Don't get me wrong, I believe just as much as I ever did that Suzuki builds a quality, well-made product. But I just don't have a whole lot of confidence in Suzuki right now. There probably aren't many other people as hopeful for Suzuki's future in the U.S. as me; I truly hope they make it here, and wouldn't hesitate to buy another one so long as they've got a solid foundation on U.S. soil. I truly wish the company the best. I'll still own my '95 Suzuki Sidekick, so I'm not totally abandoning the brand. However, in addition, we're looking to possibly start a family soon, and we could probably use the extra space the Forester has to offer.

We looked at the 2012 Impreza 2.0i Sport Premium, too, but ultimately liked the Forester more—a surprise to both of us as we really liked the new Impreza. With 170 hp and 174 ft./lbs/ of torque, the Forester felt more powerful and more engaging to us. Plus, we got a great deal through Wentworth Subaru in Portland (ask for Chuck Hanscom, he was great!). 

So, although the Forester isn't a subcompact, it is still a compact SUV. So yes, it's a bit bigger, but we're looking forward to many years with this AWD vehicle.

8 comments:

D2M said...

Subcompacts are great for a lot of things, but hauling around kids isn't one of them. Particularly if you plan on taking any kind of road trip.

Anyway, Congrats on the new vehicle! :D

Ducati Scotty said...

Subaru? That's just soooooooo Portland.

Andy Lilienthal said...

Yes, it is, Scott. Yes it is. I've also switched over to a vegan diet, growing dreadlocks, and organizing a protest against, well, something.

Just kidding.

Ducati Scotty said...

As I still have several bottles of your homebrew in my fridge I'll refrain from any more namecalling. At least until they're gone.

Andy Lilienthal said...

Shouldn't you be writing something or fixing your motorcycle? ;-p

Ducati Scotty said...

Bike is back together and running. Feels more torquey.

I wrote half a piece today at lunch. I got a Bluetooth keyboard for my iPhone so now I can write anywhere.

But yeah, I'm a slacker.

Anonymous said...

Traitor....

Andy Lilienthal said...

I knew there would be someone that said that. :-p